LAST IN A LONG LINE OF REBELS by Lisa Lewis Tyre!

LAST IN A LONG LINE OF REBELS by  Lisa Lewis Tyre! 

    

Lisa Lewis Tyre is a debut novelist and boy what a debut!  If you are looking for a great read for young adults or just want to recapture your youth with a book that has the ring of a Nancy Drew Mystery, Last in a Long Line of Rebels is a must read.

     

For the past thirty years, I have lived in houses that date back to the 1800s. Once I even tried to have a Historic Landmark Marker placed in front of one of my houses.  Let me just say, I was an adult and that whole process was a fiasco, so I could truly empathize with Lou's plight.  

After Lou inadvertently discovers that her Civil War era home might be demolished by the city she springs into action.  The thought of losing her home is unfathomable and her plan to save it is ingenious.  I was right there with our protagonist each step of the way.  Lou is outspoken and full of spunk.  No way is she about to take the news lying down.  The journey to save her home from being condemned is full of surprises because Last in a Long Line of Rebels is more than a story about saving an old house it also tackles the issue of intolerance that still exists in the world today.  

The novel is a coming of age story that allows the reader to make unexpected discoveries right along with the main character. Surprises abound the deeper into the novel the reader journeys.   Let's just say the further Lou digs into the past of her ancestors the more she realizes that one must continue to be vigilant in the fight against injustice or history can and will repeat itself.  Tyre's characters feel real and authentic and readers will be right there with Lou Mayhew on her journey of self-discovery.

Lisa Lewis Tyre’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Monday, February 1st: Geo Librarian

Tuesday, February 2nd: Randomly Reading

Wednesday, February 3rd: All Roads Lead to the Kitchen

Thursday, February 4th: Life is Story

Monday, February 8th: Just Commonly

Wednesday, February 10th: Shooting Stars Mag

Thursday, February 11th: Musings by Maureen

Monday, February 15th: Peeking Between the Pages

Tuesday, February 16th: You Can Read Me Anything

Wednesday, February 17th: WV Stitcher

Thursday, February 18th: Tina Says…

Monday, February 22nd: The Things You Can Read

Wednesday, February 24th: A Chick Who Reads

Thursday, February 25th: Just One More Chapter

Monday, February 29th: Laura’s Reviews

Wednesday, March 2nd: Absurd Book Nerd

Thursday, March 3rd: FictionZeal

Monday, March 7th: View from the Birdhouse

I'd like to thank TLC for allowing me access to an advance readers copy (ARC) of  LAST IN A LONG LINE OF REBELS by  Lisa Lewis Tyre

Does  LAST IN A LONG LINE OF REBELS by  Lisa Lewis Tyre GRAB your attention?  Is it a novel you'd be interested in reading?  Let us know here at The Things You Can Read!

Don't Forget To Be Awesome!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

I am an educator with over 25 years of teaching experience; I currently teach English in the public school system of Virginia. In my spare time, I am an avid reader. writer, reviewer, blogger, writing/art journaler, beekeeper, grad student, and MOTHER. - See more: Here

Review: Mary and Lou and Rhoda and Ted: And all the Brilliant Minds Who Made The Mary Tyler Moore Show a Classic by Jennifer Keishin

  

Rating:

4 of 5 stars   "I'm an experienced woman.  I've been around...Well, all right, I might not have been around, but I've been...nearby."-Mary Richards   Were you a kid in 70s?  I was.  Did your family gather around the TV on Saturday night to watch the great line-up on CBS?  Mine did.  One of our Saturday night favorites was The Mary Tyler Moore Show.  I can hear the theme song playing in my head as I type..."Who can turn the world on with her smile..." I loved seeing Mary walk through the streets of Minneapolis and finally throwing her Turquoise and black knit beret in the air at the intersection of Nicollet Mall and Seventh Street.  If these are familiar memories then Mary and Lou and Rhoda and Ted: And all the Brilliant Minds Who Made The Mary Tyler Moore Show a Classic by Jennifer Keishin Armstrong will be pure reading pleasure, not to mention, a real blast from the past.   If you open this book looking for interviews with the key players of The Mary Tyler Moore Show then you may be disappointed.  Interviews are not how this book is structured.  Instead, you will discover how the show developed, from premise to execution, to iconic 70s TV, and finally, to its demise.   Did you know that Mary Tyler Moore was involved in a catastrophic Broadway musical of Breakfast at Tiffany's?  Did you know that most of the scripts for the Mary Tyler Moore Show were often based on true scenarios from the female writer's lives?  Did you know that the series almost didn't last beyond its thirteen episode commitment?  Did you know that James L. Brooks, one of the producers of The Mary Tyler Moore Show was one of the co-creators of a popular, but not too memorable TV show called My Mother the Car,  These are the types of tidbits that litter the pages of  Mary and Lou and Rhoda and Ted: And all the Brilliant Minds Who Made The Mary Tyler Moore Show a Classic by Jennifer Keishin Armstrong.   One of several surprise takeaways from Mary and Lou and Rhoda and Ted: And all the Brilliant Minds Who Made The Mary Tyler Moore Show a Classic was the history of women comedy writers.  Hard to believe that this show allowed women to break the glass ceiling and join the "Male-Only" comedic writing force.  The second takeaway was a study in human nature, that of Ed Asner.  Such a great actor, but such a flawed person; he held to  such rigid beliefs and advocacies, and in so doing destroyed a long-time friendship and his own TV show, Lou Grant.  And finally, the third takeaway was what the character, Mary Richards, did for women all over America.  From the girl next door to Oprah Winfrey, young women and young girls saw what they might achieve through Mary.  "The show was a light in my life, and Mary was a trailblazer for my generation...She's the reason I wanted my own production company," stated Oprah Winfrey.  In short, Mary Richard A.K.A. Mary Tyler Moore became a symbol for women for generations, which makes The Mary Tyler Moore Show something more than an interesting blip on the 70s pop culture radar.     Take the Quiz: Are You a Mary or a Rhoda? Are You a Lou or a Ted? Additional Resources:   After All-Mary Tyler Moore's Autobiography I, Rhoda-Valerie Harper's Autobiography Mary Tyler Moore Show History Author's Website: Jennifer Keishin Strong     Summary Courtesy of Goodreads:   Mary and Lou and Rhoda and Ted: And all the Brilliant Minds Who Made The Mary Tyler Moore Show a Classic   by Jennifer Keishin Armstrong (Goodreads Author)   Mary and Lou and Rhoda and Ted: And all the Brilliant Minds Who Made The Mary Tyler Moore Show aThe story of the making of a classic and groundbreaking TV show, as experienced by its producers, writers, and cast. Mary Tyler Moore made her name as Dick Van Dyke’s wife on the eponymous show, a cute, unassuming housewife that audiences loved. But when her writer/producers James Brooks and Allan Burnes dreamed up an edgy show about a divorced woman with a career, network...moThe story of the making of a classic and groundbreaking TV show, as experienced by its producers, writers, and cast. Mary Tyler Moore made her name as Dick Van Dyke’s wife on the eponymous show, a cute, unassuming housewife that audiences loved. But when her writer/producers James Brooks and Allan Burnes dreamed up an edgy show about a divorced woman with a career, network executives replied: “Americans won’t watch television about New York City, divorcees, men with mustaches, or Jews.” But Moore and her team were committed, and when the show finally aired, in spite of tepid reviews, fans loved it. Jennifer Armstrong introduces readers to the show’s creators; its principled producer, Grant Tinker; and the writers and actors who attracted millions of viewers. As the first situation comedy to employ numerous women as writers and producers, The Mary Tyler Moore Show became a guiding light for women in the 1970s. The show also became the centerpiece of one of greatest evenings of comedy in television history, and Jennifer Armstrong describes how the television industry evolved during these golden years. Hardcover, 336 pages Published May 7th 2013 by Simon & Schuster (first published May 1st 2013) more details...        ISBN 1451659202 (ISBN13: 9781451659207) Does this sound like a book for you?  Let us know here at The Things You Can. Happy Reading and Happy Blogoversary to The Things You Can Read! Believe In Truth, Beauty, Freedom, Love, and the Power of Books!

 



Review: Astor Place Vintage by Stephanie Lehmann

Rating:	4 of 5 stars

“I had moved to Manhattan from Cold Springs…My favorite part of living in our brand-new apartment-hotel was breakfast delivered every morning on a dumbwaiter.” Thus begins our journey with Olive Westcott, one of two protagonists in Stephanie Lehmann’s Astor Place Vintage. Lehmann has successfully blended the lives of two women, living a hundred years apart, seamlessly with chapters told in alternating points of view. Olive lives in the world of 1907 in the city of New York, while Amanda Rosenbloom inhabits the more modern New York City of 2007 where the term "'vintage clothing' is a euphemism for 'clothing' worn by people who are probably dead.'"  How does Lehmann connect them? The answer is what keeps the reader enthusiastically devoted to finishing the novel.

 

Once hooked on the journal entries found in an old diary sewn into the lining of a vintage muff Astor Place Vintage becomes one of those books which can’t be put down. Through Olive’s adventures from riches, to poverty, to successful working woman in the “Men Only” Victorian job market of the early 1900s, the reader will experience some interesting twists and turns. Meanwhile, back in present day 2007 the thoroughly modern Amanda struggles to have it all, a thriving vintage clothing business, and a real committed relationship, all of which makes for a spellbinding journey.

 

An added bonus for those readers who love New York, past and present, is the setting of the story.  As is often the case with setting a novel in a city like New York, the metropolis itself becomes a character. After finishing the novel the reader will view the "Big Apple" with new more knowledgeable eyes.  Lehmann subtly shares historic New York architectural trivia. These tidbits are scattered everywhere, and eventually become key to revealing the connection which is shared by our protagonists, Olive and Amanda, and, more importantly, each woman’s connection to the ninety-eight year old antagonist, Jane Kelly. With this key interrelationship disclosed, Lehmann successfully brings the reader full circle with a realistic and satisfying conclusion to Astor Place Vintage.

I would like to thank Simon & Schuster and Edelweiss for providing an Advance Readers Copy (ARC) of Astor Place Vintage  by Stephanie Lehmann.

 

 

Additional Resources:

Goodreads Summary:  Click HERE

Author Information on Stephanie Lehmann:  Click HERE

NYC Architecture:  Click HERE
astorplacevintage.com

pinterest.com/stephlehmann

StephanieLehmann.com

vintagemanhattan.com

Does this sound like a book for you?  Let us know here at The Things You Can.

 

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The Things You Can Read!

Believe In Truth, Beauty, Freedom, Love, and the Power of Books!

 

 

 

Review: Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Theresa Anne Fowler

Review: Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Theresa Anne Fowler

“If I could fit myself into this mail slot, here, I’d follow my letter all the way to Hollywood, all the way to Scott, right up to the door of our next future.” Thus begins the roller coaster ride that was Zelda Fitzgerald’s life. Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald was a fascinating read, packed full of surprising information about this iconic couple. Theresa Anne Fowler has recreated the glamour of the 1920s with her vivid descriptions and dialogue. The one overwhelming fact, which is painfully exhibited time and time again, was that Zelda’s life with F. Scott Fitzgerald was heartbreaking. Yet, this descriptor still does not adequately convey the anguish that was her life. Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald provides the reader with a mesmerizing romp through the life this couple shared; a life that could easily be titled The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, at the end more bad and ugly. 

The enjoyment of this novel will be enhanced if the reader allows the craziness of the time period to wash over them, and not judge with a twenty-first century mindset. Remember, the Jazz Age was a time of wanton, outrageous behaviors and wasteful spending by the elite of the "Roaring Twenties.  The Fitzgerald’s ran with this exclusive crowd for a good part of their married life. For some readers, this might be a wrinkle in their enjoyment of the novel.  Don't stop, keep reading, the more you become a “voyeur” of the era, the more you will enjoy the story. This reader liked it more and more the further into the story I read.  You will hear the rhythm of the story, and when that happens sit back and enjoy.

Be forewarned, Theresa Fowler’s depiction of the couple will change how you look at F. Scott Fitzgerald as a writer and a human being. Theresa Fowler’s Zelda comes across as being mistreated by her husband. In today’s society much of the behavior that is displayed by Fitzgerald would be considered abusive. Even more shocking was his willingness to take credit for short stories written by his wife because, as he put it, he provided the opportunities and experiences that she chose as subject matter. In other words, he financed their over-the-top lifestyle, and without that, Zelda would have had nothing of interest to write. Zelda allows this and other questionable decisions and actions by her husband, which encapsulates the codependency of Zelda and Scott. “All the worriers around me fear I’m too fragile to endure Scott’s funeral, and I’ve chosen not to fight the current this time. There’s no need for me to be present; I’m not saying good-bye.” These were Zelda’s closing thoughts, which end the novel, again attesting to the co-dependent relationship in which this iconic couple thrived even in F. Scott Fitzgerald's death. 

If you are a fan of Fitzgerald or Hemingway the novel, although a work of fiction, does provide an honest portrayal of each.  I have to say again, F. Scott Fitzgerald comes off looking like an abusive husband with extremely low self-esteem, and an alcoholic.  Ernest Hemingway, the family’s literary “frenemy,” comes off looking like a sycophant who used "friends" until he didn't need them anymore.  In other words, if Hemingway’s career could not be furthered along with their help, he dumped them, often in a very mean spirited manner. If you like either one of these authors this aspect of the novel might turn you off from reading either Fitzgerald or Hemingway’s novels. Personally, I sometimes have trouble reading an author’s work if I know that they were not a very nice human being. Neither of these literary giants comes off unscathed. 

Once into the grove of life in the 20s, Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Theresa Fowler was hard to put down.  The imaginative manner Ms. Fowler shared Zelda's life made you feel like you knew her, and in knowing her, felt her pain and sorrow.  The Afterward of the novel provided a satisfying close to Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald.  If you are a fan of this growing genre of historical fiction based on literary spouses this is a must read.

I would like to thank St. Martin’s Press and Net Galley for providing an Advance Readers Copy of Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Theresa Fowler

Rating:	4 of 5 stars         Zelda Fitzgerald Image Credit: fyeahzeldafitzgerald

Summary Courtesy of Goodreads 

I wish I could tell everyone who thinks we’re ruined, Look closer…and you’ll see something extraordinary, mystifying, something real and true. We have never been what we seemed.

When beautiful, reckless Southern belle Zelda Sayre meets F. Scott Fitzgerald at a country club dance in 1918, she is seventeen years old and he is a young army lieutenant stationed in Alabama. Before long, the “ungettable” Zelda has fallen for him despite his unsuitability: Scott isn’t wealthy or prominent or even a Southerner, and keeps insisting, absurdly, that his writing will bring him both fortune and fame. Her father is deeply unimpressed. But after Scott sells his first novel, This Side of Paradise, to Scribner’s, Zelda optimistically boards a train north, to marry him in the vestry of St. Patrick’s Cathedral and take the rest as it comes.

What comes, here at the dawn of the Jazz Age, is unimagined attention and success and celebrity that will make Scott and Zelda legends in their own time. Everyone wants to meet the dashing young author of the scandalous novel—and his witty, perhaps even more scandalous wife. Zelda bobs her hair, adopts daring new fashions, and revels in this wild new world. Each place they go becomes a playground: New York City, Long Island, Hollywood, Paris, and the French Riviera—where they join the endless party of the glamorous, sometimes doomed Lost Generation that includes Ernest Hemingway, Sara and Gerald Murphy, and Gertrude Stein.

Everything seems new and possible. Troubles, at first, seem to fade like morning mist. But not even Jay Gatsby’s parties go on forever. Who is Zelda, other than the wife of a famous—sometimes infamous—husband? How can she forge her own identity while fighting her demons and Scott’s, too? With brilliant insight and imagination, Therese Anne Fowler brings us Zelda’s irresistible story as she herself might have told it. 

Additional Resources:

NPR Interview with Theresa Anne Fowler: Click HERE

New York Times Article: Hemingway's Letters Tell of Fitzgerald

New York Times Article: With Hemingway as Friend, Who Needed Enemies?

Flavorwire's Article: Read Hemingway's Tough-Love Critique of F. Scott Fitzgerald's 'Tender Is the Night'

F. Scott Fitzgerald dances with his wife, Zelda, and daughter, Frances "Scottie," in front of a Christmas tree in Paris.

Hemingway and Fitzgerald in Paris, France in 1925

Quote

“His [Scott Fitzgerald's] talent was as natural as the pattern that made by the dust on a butterfly's wings. At one time he understood it no more than the butterfly did and he did not know when it was brushed or marred. Later he became conscious of his damaged wings and of their construction and he learned to think and could not fly any more because the love of flight was gone and he could only remember when it had been effortless.”― Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast

Zelda Fitzgerald

       

Image Credit: fyeahzeldafitzgerald

Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald

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Believe In Truth, Beauty, Freedom, Love, and the Power of Books

Review: The Bookstore by Deborah Meyler

Review: The Bookstore by Deborah Meyler

Rating:	4 of 5 stars

“I, Esme Garland, do not approve of mess. This is unfortunate, because ever since I woke up this morning I’ve had a feeling that I might be in one,” thus begins The Bookstore by Deborah Meyler published by Simon & Schuster, Inc. What a surprise for Esme, a smart Brit who is working on her PhD in art history at Columbia University in New York City, when she discovers she is pregnant. A baby is not in her plans, especially not a baby with someone who she has only been dating a few months. The rest of the story follows the rocky road Esme travels over the next nine months, and rocky it is. All the twists and turns in Esme’s journey to Georgie’s arrival are what make the novel an entertaining read. 

The Bookstore is set in New York City, and the city itself is a character. Her personality shines from chapter to chapter. Enjoy discovering the name of an “out of the way” restaurant, a favorite museum, or some other New York landmark which Meyler slips into the storyline, creating a real New York feel. Knowledge of the city will only add to the enjoyment of this debut author’s novel. If you are a novice to New York the novel will generate a deep seated-desire to visit “The Big Apple.” For those readers who love the intricacies of life in New York this is a must read.

Esme’s true salvation and redemption comes not from her family back in England, but from the family she cultivates at her job at The Owl, a small, seemingly insignificant, independent book store sandwiched in-between the behemoth Gap and Staples on this New York City block. Easy to overlook, but once found, an oasis for thirsty literary souls. Esme’s relationships with "The Bookstore" pays homage to all those fellow bibliophiles out there who find peace, friendship, and community among the shelves of a favorite local independent bookstore. The Owl is Esme’s safety net. It is here that George, the owner of The Owl, and Luke, a long-standing, guitar playing manager, take Esme under their wings and give her the foundation to try and have it all, a baby and a PhD. 

If you are looking for a great summer read The Bookstore is definitely for you.

I'd like to thank Gallery Books and Edelweiss for providing an advance reader's copy of The Bookstore.

Summary Courtesy of Goodreads 

A witty, sharply observed debut novel about a young woman who finds unexpected salvation while working in a quirky used bookstore in Manhattan. Impressionable and idealistic, Esme Garland is a young British woman who finds herself studying art history in New York. She loves her apartment and is passionate about the city and her boyfriend; her future couldn’t look brighter. Until she finds out that she’s pregnant.

Esme’s boyfriend, Mitchell van Leuven, is old-money rich, handsome, successful, and irretrievably damaged. When he dumps Esme—just before she tries to tell him about the baby—she resolves to manage alone. She will keep the child and her scholarship, while finding a part-time job to make ends meet. But that is easier said than done, especially on a student visa. 

The Owl is a shabby, second-hand bookstore on the Upper West Side, an all-day, all-night haven for a colorful crew of characters: handsome and taciturn guitar player Luke; Chester, who hyperventilates at the mention of Lolita; George, the owner, who lives on protein shakes and idealism; and a motley company of the timeless, the tactless, and the homeless. The Owl becomes a nexus of good in a difficult world for Esme—but will it be enough to sustain her? Even when Mitchell, repentant and charming, comes back on the scene? 

A rousing celebration of books, of the shops where they are sold, and of the people who work, read, and live in them, The Bookstore is also a story about emotional discovery, the complex choices we all face, and the accidental inspirations that make a life worth the reading.

Does The Bookstore sound like a book for you?  Let us know here at The Things You Can Read.

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Review: The Book of Secrets By Elizabeth Arnold

“Sitting in our bookstore at night, I can hear the stories.  Or not hear them so much as feel them: the neat, round softness of Austen with its improbable, inevitable love affairs; the sprawl of Dickens with its meandering threads tying into coincidental knots.  All the books have colors and shapes not just from the stories written but from the stories of the authors who’ve done the writing; from Steinbeck’s realism to Murakami’s cubism, a regular art museum of voices.” Enter the world of Chloe Sinclair whose life-long relationship with books has been a centering force.  Chloe’s bond with the characters she meets on the page is just as real as the life-long friendship she shares with Nate, her husband, and his sisters, Grace and Cecelia.  If this strikes a chord then this novel is a must read.

The Book of Secrets is a book lover’s dream.  Elizabeth Arnold has captured the love affair many have with books.  She has found the words to express eloquently the real connections people make with words written on the page.  “So.  Once upon a time there was a girl named Chloe who lived virtually alone, in a cottage by the woods.”  Enter Chloe’s world.  The world she creates on her eighth birthday when according to Chloe “…she was born.”  Join her as her life entangles with that of the Sinclair family, an entanglement that will forever interlace Chloe’s life with that of this eccentric family, a family full of secrets.  As Chloe says, “We think we know our friends, our lovers, but really all we know is pieces of them.  Fragments we learn by watching, sharing time and place, listening to their stories; over the years there are more and more of these fragments and we can draw lines between them, fill them with what we imagine is true.  But of course we only know what they show us; lines we think jig here may actually curl somewhere else altogether.  The lines we draw aren't always real, and often have more to do with our own selves.”  Delve into this work of fiction and immerse yourself in an engrossing portrayal of a family.

The author artfully and repeatedly uses that age-old comforting childhood phrase, Once Upon a Time, that initiates many children into the world of storytelling:  “Once upon a time there was a young man who’d loved a girl so deeply, so truly, that he left his family to be with her.”  Step over the threshold into Elizabeth `Arnold’s remarkable love story to literature.  The Chronicles of Narnia, Where the Wild Things Are, Crime and Punishment, The Pit and the Pendulum, and The Road Not Taken are just a few of the chapter titles which allow the reader to establish the mood for events to come or yet to be revealed.   

I found The Book of Secrets mesmerizing.  It is one of those novels that kept this reader up into the wee hours of the morning because I had to know what was going to happen next.  When was the last time you stayed up past your bedtime to finish a book because you just could not stop reading?  If you love books, I mean really, really, really, love books, and you love novels that tackle big themes, such as, Family, Friendship,  Marriage, and Loss then read The Book of Secrets by Elizabeth Arnold. 

We want to thank Bantam and Net Galley for providing us with an ARC (Advanced Readers Copy) of  The Book of Secrets by Elizabeth Arnold.

Rating:	4 of 5 stars

Summary Courtesy of Net Galley:

At once a captivating mystery, a love letter to classic literature, and a sharp-eyed examination of marriage, The Book of Secrets is a gripping novel of family, friendship, and the undeniable pull of the past.

After more than twenty years of marriage, Chloe Sinclair comes home one night to find that her husband, Nate, is gone. All he has left behind is a cryptic note explaining that he’s returned to his and Chloe’s childhood town of Redbridge, California—a place brimming with memories of young love and unspeakable loss, and a place Chloe never wants to see again.

Tending to their small bookstore while trying to reach her husband, Chloe stumbles upon a notebook tucked inside Nate’s ancient copy of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Written in a code that Nate and his sisters created as children—using passages from their favorite books to scramble hidden messages in the text—the pages contain long-buried secrets from Chloe’s and Nate’s past, and clues to why he’s gone back to Redbridge after all these years. As Chloe reunites with Nate’s family and struggles to decipher the notebook’s hidden messages, she revisits the seminal moments of their youth: the day she met the enigmatic Sinclair children and learned what a magical escape books could be from a troubled childhood; the first time Nate kissed her, camped out on the beach like Robinson Crusoe; the elaborate plan the young couple devised, inspired by Romeo and Juliet, to break free from Nate’s oppressive father, and how the thwarted attempt upended their lives forever. And as the reason for Nate’s absence comes to light, the truth will shatter everything Chloe knows—about her husband, his family, and herself.

Does this sound like a book for you?  Let us know here at The Things You Can Read!

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The Things You Can Read

Believe In Truth, Beauty, Freedom, Love, and the Power of Books!

Life After Life: Book Review

 

"Now Joanna is holding the hand of someone waiting for her daughter to arrive.  Only months ago, this woman-Lois Flowers-was one of the regulars in Pine Haven's dining room where the residents often linger long after the meal for some form of entertainment or another."  Thus begins Jill McCorkle's Life After Life: A Novel, a novel that is set in a small southern town, Fulton North Carolina.  The heart of the town is Pine Haven Estates, a retirement home full of eccentric characters.  Some of these off-beat folks work for the retirement community others are residents.  Each character is rich and full.  Jill McCorkle litters the pages with individuals that the reader would love to meet, even the not so likable ones would, at a minimum, certainly make for an interesting conversation. 

Saying that Life After Life: A Novel is about a retirement home and dying does not do the novel justice.  The story is about self-discovery.  "The longest and most expensive journey you will ever make is the one to yourself," is a startling, yet real, realization one of the main characters, Joanna, makes early on in the novel.  This is a story about making peace.  For many of the characters this is a long and painful journey.  Good parenting, bad parenting, good choices, bad choices, choices never made-these are but a few of the issues characters face; especially those who are dying.  Rich or poor, it doesn't matter; life is hard and full of adversity.  As we all know, adversity is often senseless, painful, and beyond our control, yet how we react to life’s hard knocks is the key to our journey.  Many of the characters in Life After Life: A Novel choose to learn valuable lessons from each adversity they encounter.  

 

The chapters are sprinkled with gems for living.  For example, one character, C.J., observes, "Real clean people are often overcompensating for some really bad shit and really dirty people just don't care.  Which is worse?  Flip a coin."   Keen observations about life abound, look for them. 

Life After Life is a novel full of examples on "how to live" or "not to live" a rewarding life.  Take a moment and see what can be learned from Sadie, Joanna, Rachel, Stanley, C.J. and a slew of other folks that are waiting inside these 352 pages.  As Joanna says, "Now you see her, now you don't.  It's an easy trick, all about making the right turns, standing in the right place at the right time.  If you look closely enough you can see the opening; you can see what's coming..."  Enjoy the journey! 

We want to thank Algonquin Books and Net Galley for providing us with an ARC (Advanced Readers Copy) of Life After Life: A Novel by Jill McCorkle. As always, Algonquin continues to publish the best and the brightest writers, we are never disappointed after reading a book published by this house.

Summary Courtesy Goodreads
Life After Life: A Novel
by Jill McCorkle

Jill McCorkle s first novel in seventeen years is alive with the daily triumphs and challenges of the residents and staff of Pine Haven Estates, a retirement facility, which is now home to a good many of Fulton, North Carolina s older citizens. Among them, third-grade teacher Sadie Randolph, who has taught every child in town and believes we are all eight years old in our hearts; Stanley Stone, once Fulton s most prominent lawyer, now feigning dementia to escape life with his son; Marge Walker, the town s self-appointed conveyor of social status who keeps a scrapbook of every local murder and heinous crime; and Rachel Silverman, recently widowed, whose decision to leave her Massachusetts home and settle in Fulton is a mystery to everyone but her. C.J., the pierced and tattooed young mother who runs the beauty shop, and Joanna, the hospice volunteer who discovers that her path to a good life lies with helping folks achieve good deaths, are two of the staff on whom the residents depend.

 

McCorkle puts her finger on the pulse of every character s strengths, weaknesses, and secrets. And, as she connects their lives through their present circumstances, their pasts, and, in some cases, through their deaths, she celebrates the blessings and wisdom of later life and infuses this remarkable novel with hope and laughter.

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Book Blogger Appreciation Week-Day 4

Book Blogger Appreciation Week Day 4
Books We Want Others to Love
Image Credit:  Free Vintage Digistamps 

September 10 -14, 2012 is Book Blogger Appreciation Week, so welcome to Day 4 of Book Blogger Appreciation Week.  On Day 4 of Book Blogger Appreciation Week bloggers are asked to ponder the following:

One of the best parts about book blogging is the exposure to books and authors you might never have heard of before. Pimp the book you think needs more recognition on this day. Get creative! Maybe share snippets from other bloggers who have reviewed it or make some fun art to get your message across.

At The Things You Can Read, we have enjoyed finding two books that we would like to pump-up!

Book One

1 Concert, 2000 Miles, and 3 Ex-Best Friends-Don't you just love that tag line?  Aren't you ready to open this one up right now...well, in the mean time-until you get your copy-take a peek at the book trailer for Reunited...

Visit Reunited in the blogosphere at:http://hilarywgraham.wordpress.com 

or on the web at: http://www.hilarygraham.com/index.html.  

We loved this book and plan to spotlight it in a review in the very near future!

Book Two

My Review:

OyMG by Amy Fellner Dominy

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was lucky enough to win an autographed copy of OyMG by Amy Fellner Dominy back in April 2012 on the YA Reads for Teachers (And Any Other Adults!) Goodreads group. I was so excited to receive the book and join in the discussion on Goodreads, but alas the last third of the book waited for my summer break to finally see me complete this charming YA novel. Well, having just completed OyMG, I wanted to share my thoughts.

OyMG is the story of a young teenager, Ellie Taylor. Ellie is a born arguer, and she has par-laid this talent into becoming a successful debater. However, Ellie has just finished middle school, and wants to attend the private and ultra-exclusive Benedict High School, which is known for having the best debate team around. Not having the money to attend, there is only one way Ellie can make her dream reality, and that is to win the scholarship that is offered at the Christian Society Speech and Performing Arts Summer Camp that is held at the school. The one fly in the ointment is that Ellie has been raised in the Jewish faith, although her father is Christian, her family embraces her mother's Jewish heritage. How will she handle the problems that arise at camp?

I'll jump right in, the concept of uniqueness is one that has always intrigued me. OyMG addresses this theme in a big way. In movies we see memorable characters that are unique and different, and we love them. However, movies are not reality and even though these unique characters are placed on a pedestal and admired for their unconventional, unexpected, and unorthodox qualities-think Amelie-this is not the way of the real world. I guess the question I keep asking myself is does the majority of society really value this type of person? We tell children that everyone is unique and that this is something to be valued, but yet "sameness" and conformity is often what is expected, and ultimately more valued, especially at school. I don't want to explore why this is true, but rather state that it is and relate it to the novel.

The main character, Ellie Taylor, is faced with having lived her life as someone who is unique-different, but when her dream of attending an exclusive private school forces her to deny who she is, she is quick to conform. All the while, telling herself she still is the person she always has been, and this conformity is just a means-to-an-end. In other words, Ellie lies to herself. Ellie is lucky enough to have her parents and her grandfather in her life, each try to help her see that by denying who she is, she is selling out, and this choice has consequences. One of the consequences is that Ellie will never be the person she once was if she denies her heritage/race and her beliefs.

I truly enjoyed following Ellie's progress through the novel. It is an easy read, geared more to tweens, in my opinion. The main characters are believable. One of the most flushed out characters in the novel is Ellie's Jewish grandfather, Zeydeh, who truly helps Ellie value and accept herself-just as she is. The wealthy antisemitic antagonist is painted in a manner that helps teenagers see how someone can appear "ever so nice" on the surface, but harbor deep seeded prejudices. Throughout the arc of the story, young people learn that discriminators don't look different; it is their actions that make them appear ugly, and this is what sets them apart.  There are lots of life lessons in this wonderful YA novel for adults as well as young adults.

Let us know what book or books you'd like to pump-up!  Post your choice or choices in our comments section.  

Happy Blogger Appreciation Week!
The Things You Can Read